By Joe Graviss
State representative, Woodford County and parts of Fayette and Franklin counties
State representative, Woodford County and parts of Fayette and Franklin counties
Legislative sessions are mostly remembered
for laws that are enacted, but for some people, keeping a bill from the
governor’s desk is a victory, too.
When the General Assembly wrapped up its work late last month, for example,
teachers were especially pleased to see that two of the bills they strongly
opposed never even came up for a vote in the House, much less the Senate.
The most significant of those would have changed how the Kentucky Teachers
Retirement System’s Board of Trustees is chosen. In that case, teachers
would have seen their authority to nominate seven of the 11 trustees drop to
one, with another nominated by retired teachers. The others would have
been nominated by several educational organizations, bankers and CPAs, even
though current law already requires two trustees to have investment experience.
KTRS is one of the state’s best-funded public retirement systems and measures
up well when compared to its counterparts in other states, so this proposal was
simply unnecessary. We shouldn’t tinker with a formula that is working
well.
The same can be said of another misguided education bill, which in this case
would have provided up to $25 million in tax credits for those who donate to
private-school scholarship funds that are used to help families afford tuition
costs.
There is a serious legal question whether this could even be allowed under the
state constitution, and at a time when the current two-year budget has no money
at all for new textbooks or professional development for teachers, this bill is
not something we can remotely afford. Think KERA and why all that
happened.
Sometimes, bills that are popular in one legislative chamber fail to gain
traction in the other. This year, three major bills cleared the House with near-unanimous support but failed to move any further in
the Senate.
One bill would have increased the state income-tax exemption for all retirees
to $41,100, which is what had long been on the books before being dropped by one-fourth as part of last year’s major tax overhaul, which I opposed.
Older Kentuckians fully
affected by the 2018 change saw their income taxes go up by $500. Unfortunately,
we will have to wait another year before being able to help these citizens,
many of whom live on a fixed income.
Just as the Senate was hesitant to pass
this bill, it also blocked legislation that would have rolled back some of the
$215,000 raise – that’s right, a six-figure raise – that Gov. Bevin gave last year to a
longtime friend of his who serves as the state’s chief information
officer. This puts that official’s salary well above anyone else’s in a
comparable position in other states.
A third House bill (one I
co-sponsored) that the Senate chose not to act on would have improved harassment
laws for the Legislative Branch. Had this bipartisan and reasonable
response to two scandals over the past five years passed, those who serve in or
work for or with the General Assembly would have had greater protections from
harassment.
Some bills that weren’t approved this year
appear to be gathering steam. Perhaps the most popular would have
legalized medical marijuana, which would have added Kentucky to the 30-plus
states that have already taken this or similar steps.
More than half of the 100 House members
signed on as co-sponsors, and a committee approved the bill
overwhelmingly, and yet it still never came up for a vote in the House. This
legislation was a reasonable compromise and would have given some needed relief
to many citizens who suffer from such things as seizures. This could also
have played an important role in fighting Kentucky’s ongoing opioid epidemic.
Sports wagering is another activity
spreading to a growing number of states, following last year’s U.S. Supreme
Court ruling that made this form of gaming legal outside of Nevada.
If this year’s bill had passed, it would
have set aside most of state government’s portion to help pay down the
long-term liabilities facing our public retirement systems.
One of the regrets I have about this legislative session is that many
worthwhile bills were never even given serious consideration. One would
have raised the state’s minimum wage, which hasn’t been increased since 2009,
and another would have given voters a chance to restore voting rights to felons
who have served their full sentence. This has garnered widespread support
in the House in recent years, and it’s past due to be approved, since only one
other state – Iowa – is still enforcing rules as tough as Kentucky’s.
Overall, this year’s 30-day legislative session covered quite a lot of ground,
and while the time to pass new laws is over for the year, the General
Assembly’s work will continue when House and Senate committees begin meeting
jointly in June. During this interim, which runs through early December,
other legislators and I will review issues affecting the state and prepare for
the 2020 legislative session.
With that in mind, it is never too late to let me know your views about this
work.
You can email me at joe.graviss@lrc.ky.gov,
while the toll-free message line at 1-800-372-7181 is available each
weekday. If you have a hearing impairment, the number is 1-800-896-0305.
The General Assembly’s website, meanwhile,
is www.legislature.ky.gov.
Thanks for all you do and holler anytime.
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